Hirakud Dam authorities release water, Odisha govt asks collectors to be on high alert

Bhubaneswar: With the Hirakud Dam authorities releasing the season's first flood water in the river Mahanadi, the Odisha government on Sunday asked collectors of seven downstream districts to be on high alert and tell people not to go near the riverbank, officials said.

After customary puja, the dam authorities opened sluice gate number seven followed by others. A total of 20 gates will be opened in three phases – 7 gates at 9:30 am, another 7 at 12:30 pm and the remaining 6 gates at 2.30 pm, to flush out excess water amid heavy rainfall in the upper catchment areas and the inflow of water into the reservoir.

The water level of Hirakud stood at 616.93 ft against its full reservoir capacity of 630 feet, at 6 am. While the inflow of water into the reservoir was 3,16,000 cusec, the outflow was 40,126 cusec.

The state government in a release said that due to the opening of 20 gates, the Khairmal discharge would be around 4.50 lakh cusecs by 8 am on July 29 and the Mundali discharge will be around 5 lakh cusecs by 11 am on July 30.

"Collectors of Sambalpur, Sonepur, Nayagarh, Puri, Cuttack, Jagatsinghpur and Kendrapada have been asked to alert the people downstream not to enter to the Mahanadi riverside. Animals will also not be allowed to gaze close to the river. Collectors are also requested to remain alert and monitor the situation," it said.

The District Emergency Operation Centre will also be manned by senior officers so that no untoward incident happens, the Special Relief Commissioner (SRC) said in a letter to collectors.